Beige
Beige is a very pale brown which takes its name from the French word for the color of natural wool.[1] It is variously described as a pale sandy fawn color,[2] or a grayish tan,[3] a light-grayish yellowish brown, or a pale to grayish yellow.[4] It has come to be used for a range of light tints chosen for their neutral or pale warm appearance.
Beige was used as a color term in the modern sense in France beginning in about 1855-60; the writer Edmond de Goncourt used it in the novel La Fille Elisa in 1877.
The first recorded use of beige as a color name in English was in 1887,[5]
Beginning in the 1920s, the meaning of the term beige expanded to the point where it is now also used not only for pale brown colors, but also for a wide range of pale yellow shades, some of more notable of which are shown below.
It is notoriously difficult to produce in traditional offset CMYK printing due to the low levels of inks used on each plate; often it will print in purple or green and vary within a print run.
| Beige (French) | |
|---|---|
 Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #C8AD7F |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (200, 173, 127) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 14, 37, 22) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (38°, 40%, 64%) |
| Source | Article on beige in the French Wikipedia |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
| Beige | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #F5F5DC |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (245, 245, 220) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 0, 10, 4) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (60°, 10%, 96%) |
| Source | X11 |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
The color beige is displayed to the right.
Contents |
Variations of beige[edit]
Cosmic latte[edit]
| Cosmic Latte | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #FFF8E7 |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (255, 248, 231) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 2.7, 99.6, 0) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (40°, 94%, 90%) |
| Source | Internet |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
Cosmic latte is a name assigned in 2002 to the average color of the universe (derived from a sampling of the electromagnetic radiation from 200,000 galaxies), given by a team of astronomers from Johns Hopkins University.
Cream[edit]
| Cream | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #FFFDD0 |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (255, 253, 208) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 1, 18, 0) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (57°, 18%, 100%) |
| Source | [1]/Maerz and Paul |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
Cream is the color of the cream produced by cattle grazing on natural pasture with plants rich in yellow carotenoid pigments, some of which are incorporated into the cream, to give a yellow tone to white.
The first recorded use of cream as a color name in English was in 1590.[6]
Unbleached silk[edit]
| Unbleached Silk | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #FFDDCA |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (255, 221, 202) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 3, 21, 0) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (22°, 21%, 100[7]%) |
| Source | JTC |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
The color unbleached silk is shown at right.
This color is one of the Japanese traditional colors in use since 660 CE in the form of various dyes that are used in designing kimonos.[8][9]
The name of this color in Japanese is shironeri.
Tuscan[edit]
| Tuscan | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #FAD6A5 |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (250, 214, 165) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 14, 31, 2) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (35°, 34%, 98[10]%) |
| Source | ISCC-NBS |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
Displayed at right is the color Tuscan.
The first recorded use of Tuscan as a color name in English was in 1887.[11]
Buff[edit]
| Buff | |
|---|---|
| Colour coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #F0DC82 |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (240, 220, 130) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 8, 46, 6) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (49°, 46%, 94%) |
| Source | [2]/Maerz and Paul |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
Buff is a pale yellow-brown color that got its name from the colour of buffed leather.[12]
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, buff as a descriptor of a colour was first used in the London Gazette of 1686, describing a uniform to be "A Red Coat with a Buff-colour'd lining".[13]
Desert sand[edit]
| Desert Sand | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #EDC9AF |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (237, 201, 175) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 17, 26, 8) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (19°, 26%, 92[14]%) |
| Source | Crayola |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
The color desert sand is displayed at right. It may be regarded as a deep shade of beige. It is a pale tint of a color called desert. The color name "desert" was first used in 1920.[15]
Beige and ecru[edit]
 |
Look up ecru in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
| Ecru | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #C2B280 |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (194, 178, 128) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (45°, 34%, 76%) |
| Source | ISCC-NBS |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) |
|
The color ecru is displayed at right.
Originally in the 19th century and up to at least 1930, the color ecru meant exactly the same color as beige (i.e. the pale cream color shown above as beige),[16] and the word is often used to refer to such fabrics as silk and linen in their unbleached state. Ecru comes from the French word écru, which means literally 'raw' or 'unbleached'.
Since at least the 1950s, however, the color ecru has been regarded as a different color from beige, presumably in order to allow interior designers a wider palette of colors to choose from.[17]
Khaki[edit]
| Khaki | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #C3B091 |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (195, 176, 145) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (37°, 26%, 76%) |
| Source | HTML/CSS |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) |
|
Displayed at right is the color khaki.
This is the web color called khaki in HTML/CSS.
The color shown at right matches the color designated as khaki in the 1930 book A Dictionary of Color, the standard for color nomenclature before the introduction of computers.
The first recorded use of khaki as a color name in English was in 1848.[18]
French beige[edit]
| French Beige | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #A67B5B |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (166, 123, 91) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 26, 45, 35) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (26°, 45%, 65[19]%) |
| Source | ISCC-NBS |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
At right is displayed another version of the color French beige.
The first recorded use of French beige as a color name in English was in 1927.[20]
The source of this color is the following website: ISCC-NBS Dictionary of Color Names (1955)--Color Sample of French beige (color sample #57)
Mode beige[edit]
| Mode Beige | |
|---|---|
| Color coordinates |
|
| Hex triplet | #967117 |
| sRGBB (r, g, b) | (150, 113, 23) |
| CMYKH (c, m, y, k) | (0, 24, 85, 41) |
| HSV (h, s, v) | (43°, 85%, 59[21]%) |
| Source | ISCC-NBS |
| B: Normalized to [0–255] (byte) H: Normalized to [0–100] (hundred) |
|
Mode beige is a very dark shade of beige.
Two other alternate names for this exact color are drab and sand dune,[22] in use, respectively, since 1686[23] and 1925.[24]
The first recorded use of mode beige as a color name in English was in 1928.[25]
The color mode beige is a masterpiece of rebranding—taking the color "drab", a color whose name had become a synonym for dullness, and remaking it into the exciting, fun color "mode beige".
Beige in nature[edit]
Beige in human culture[edit]
Beige is often employed as a metaphor for dullness, neutrality or conformity. For example, on Futurama, the inhabitants of the Neutral Planet declare a "beige alert" when their population is under threat. Also, when discussing playing Al Gore on The Late Show with David Letterman, Darrell Hammond pondered, "How do you spruce up beige?"
- The Beige Book, more formally called the Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions, is a report published by the Federal Reserve Board eight times a year. Each report is a gathering of "anecdotal information on current economic conditions" by each Federal Reserve Bank in its district.
- Beige tones have so often been used for personal computer cases and peripherals like mice and monitors that the term beige box has come to mean an ordinary, run-of-the-mill, generic, unremarkable personal computer.
- Beige is a house sketch team at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York City.
- The skin color of lighter-skinned Caucasians is often described as being beige or peach.
- A mixed-race, part black and part white person, often referred to as a mulatto, is also sometimes described by themselves or others as being colored beige, referring to the darker tones of beige.
- Beige Planet Mars is an original New Adventures novel by Lance Parkin and Mark Clapham featuring the fictional archaeologist Bernice Summerfield. The New Adventures are a spin-off from the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.
- The Beige Room was a popular San Francisco gay bar located in North Beach at 831 Broadway between Powell and Mason between 1951 and 1958.[26] Noted drag queen Jose Sarria often performed there. The Beige Room was “where San Francisco’s drag culture flourished”. Large Halloween parties were held there with a costume contest.[27]
- Beige was the color of the New Zealand Cricket team from 1981-1989.
- Notable sporting teams around the world have adopted beige as their club color. The Dan O'Connell Cricket Club (DOCCC) is the most notable example with the Beige Army gaining national recognition in Australia for support of the DOCCC.
- The National Cricket Team of New Zealand has group of followers known as the Beige Brigade.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ MacMillan On-Line dictionary, and Le Petit Robert Dictionaire.
- ^ Oxford English Dictionary
- ^ Webster's New World Dictionary of the English Language, 1964
- ^ MacMillan On-Line Dictionary.
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Colour New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 190; Color Sample of Beige: Page 45 Plate 11 Color Sample C2 The color shown above matches the colour sample in the book.
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 206; Color Sample of Cream: Page 41 Plate 9 Color Sample D4 The color shown above matches the color sample in the book.
- ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code of color #FFDDCA (Unbleached Silk):
- ^ Nagasaki, Seiki. Nihon no dentoshoku : sono shikimei to shikicho, Seigensha, 2001. ISBN 4-916094-53-0
- ^ Nihon Shikisai Gakkai. Shinpen shikisai kagaku handobukku, Tokyo Daigaku Shuppankai, 1985. ISBN 4-13-061000-7
- ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code #FAD6A5 (Tuscan):
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 206; Color Sample of Tuscan: Page 43 Plate 10 Color Sample E5
- ^ Paterson, Ian (2003), A Dictionary of Colour (1st paperback ed.), London: Thorogood (published 2004), p. 73, ISBN 1-85418-375-3, OCLC 60411025
- ^ "buff, adj.1". Oxford English Dictionary. OUP. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
- ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code of color #EDC9AF (Desert Sand):
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 194; Color Sample of Desert: Page 47 Plate 12 Color Sample I7
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 149--Discussion of the color Beige (shown in this book's color sample as being the same color that is displayed as "beige" in the Wikipedia color box shown above) notes that beige is exactly the same color as Ecru.
- ^ 1955 ISCC-NBS color chart (scanned onto the Internet) shows ecru as being a different color than beige):
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 197; Color Sample of Khaki: Page 49 Plate 13 Color Sample J7
- ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code of color #A67B5B (French Beige):
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 195; Color Sample of French beige: Page 49 Plate 13 Color Sample A7
- ^ web.forret.com Color Conversion Tool set to hex code of color #967117 (Mode Beige):
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 50
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 194
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 204
- ^ Maerz and Paul A Dictionary of Color New York:1930 McGraw-Hill Page 199; Color Sample of Mode Beige: Page 47 Plate 14 Color Sample B5
- ^ Boyd, Nan Alamilla Wide Open Town: A History of Queer San Francisco to 1965 Berkeley, California:2003 University of California Press Page 245 List of North Beach Gay Bars and Restaurants 1938-1965, with map on page 244
- ^ Boyd, Nan Alamilla Wide Open Town: A History of Queer San Francisco to 1965 Berkeley, California:2003 University of California Press Page 131-132
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